The Kansas City Chiefs have announced the Missouri and Kansas High School Coach of the Week honors for this past week. Smithville High School's Jason Ambroson (Missouri) and St. James Academy's Tom Radke (Kansas) each received this honor after a strong performance by their respective teams this past week.
As a result of this honor, both schools will receive a $500 grant. Additionally, Ambroson and Radke will be presented with congratulatory footballs autographed by Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid and a certificate recognizing their selection. Each coach is now a finalist for their state's Chiefs Coach of the Year Award.
Smithville beat St. Joseph LeBlond 35-7 for its fourth straight win. During that stretch, the Warriors have outscored their opponents 139-21. Ambroson said this award means a lot to him and the entire football community.
"The Smithville High School football team, school district and this community are very grateful to be recognized with this honor. As the head coach of this program, I am so thankful and truly blessed to work with such a tight- knit group of great kids, hard-working coaches and an administration that believes in and supports each other as a whole. Every day we are together is a great day to be a Warrior. We would also like to thank the Kansas City Chiefs for this recognition, but even more importantly thank the organization and all those involved in the process for their support of local high school athletics and the perpetuation of the positive values associated with the great game of football."
St. James traveled to Jefferson City and defeated traditional Missouri power Helias Catholic 28-24 to move to 4-0 on the season. Radke said the win was big for his program and the honor goes to everyone involved.
"This is a great honor for the football team and for St. James Academy," Radke said. "It is the first Coach of the Week award for the program. All the credit goes to my assistant coaches for having a great game plan and sticking to it. Offensive Coordinator Matt Joshi and Defensive Coordinator Mike Consiglio did a great job of having the guys prepared. We have had great senior leadership this year by captains Trey Keith, Sam Winger and Nick Pate who lead the guys on the field and in their faith. They kept the boys focused on the long trip to Helias and kept the guys grinding through all four quarters. It is a lot of fun watching the guys improve each week."
The 2015 High School Coach of the Week program is a joint initiative of the Kansas City Chiefs and the National Football League. This program is designed to recognize and reward Kansas City area high school coaches for superior performance on a weekly basis. The Chiefs Coach of the Week program is intended to honor individuals who are shaping today's youth and tomorrow's leaders. Each state's winner is selected in collaboration with PrepsKC. For more information on this week's winners and the Chiefs Coach of the Week program, visit www.chiefs.com or www.prepskc.com.
